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Another Stop Killing Cyclists event in London – to give a petition to the Mayor's advisor

Holding a box containing the signatures of 36,795 Londoners, including mine, Mayor Boris Johnson’s Cycling Advisor, Andrew Gilligan, states on this video that ‘I think we more or less agree about policy. The only disagreement is about timing’. WELL: if he was speaking to me then he agrees that cycling should receive 35% of London’s transport for at least the next decade, or until the percentage of journeys done by bike increases from 2% to 35%. At present cycling receives 2% of the TfL budget. So my comments are:Whoopee! Thank you very much Mr Gilligan!

When I saw your image of the Kurilpa bridge I feared it was for pedestrians only – so I was very pleased to read on Wiki that it is also for cyclists. So two questions: is it popular with cyclists and do are there any conflicts with pedestrians? It has some kinship with London’s Hungerford Bridge which I regard as a mean spirited project because there is no space for cycling and nowhere to sit. Seen from afar, it seems a pity if the Kurilpa Bridge has no vegetation and nowhere to sit.
I often think about competitions but soon start dithering over the issue of prizes. I don’t think people worry much about them but it seems fair to give something in return for effort.

It looks very good – is the ‘roof’ an upper deck?
Where they designate cycle lanes in London both the pedestrians and the bikers tend to ignore the markings.
I gave copies of my book on Asian gardens as prizes for Tiananmen. This felt a bit too much like self-promotion and I think one of the 3 prize-winners did not respond to my request for a delivery address. I think people enjoy a challenge and would like to think of a way of building on this enthusiasm. Encouraging idealism is better than encouraging materialism.

You may be interested to know that Qatar is currently building hundreds of kilometers of new cycle paths. Every single expressway built is equipped with a dedicated cycle way. Within less than a decade it will be possible to cycle the length and breadth of the country, should one want to. Extraordinary, when one thinks that even now in winter (which feels like a cool UK summer), if one sees 10 cyclists on the street during a trip through Doha, then this is exceptional.

I am glad to hear about Qatar’s cycle tracks. But cyclists often think the reason for building them (instead of widening roads to accommodate cyclists) is to free up the roadspace for motor vehicles. Could the Qatar bike paths be intended for migrant labourers?

Cyclists are often never happy, whatever is built. I know, I am one of them. Some of the worst cycling experiences of my life have occured on cycleways with no motorised traffic. Some of the best on interesting intersections such as Hyde Park Corner. Simon Jenkins seems to have understood this, but gave up too early after a setback, in my opinion.

It is unclear for whom Qatar´s national cycle network is being built. The vast majority of the country´s cyclists are indeed migrant workers, be they labourers or professionals; in the sum, though, they are few. The sum is even fewer of those that would want to cycle long distance, although I am tempted to try for the experience, once. I believe the policy was instigated by the previous Emir: the present incumbent – his son- is making sure that the policy actually gets realised.

In the course of writing a report today I was interested to learn that despite the offer of 279 km of dedicated cycleway, the citizens of Milton Keynes’ rates of cycle commuting are well below the UK national average for urban areas (“Milton Keynes”, Wikipedia). Perhaps the generous offer of grid roads there speaks to the natural laziness of the human condition?

Is the Emir of Qatar a cyclist? My gut instinct is that all cycle planners must be cyclists (I’m also doubtful about catholic priests giving good advice on sex). But re cycling round Hyde Park Corner, the only pleasure I can imagine is that of an extreme sport, not something to ‘enjoy’ on a journey to work.
An appraisal of the Milton Keynes ‘Redway’ (by a MK Cycling Group) found the accident rate to he higher than that for cycling in Central London – leading me to write an article on Blood in Milton Keynes. Needless to say, it was not planned by cyclists. I also remember a story of a Dutch landscape architect being shown the MK cycleway by its promoters. His question was always the same ‘Is it the shortest distance from A to B’? When they dissembled he said ‘It will not work’. So what the highway engineers created in MK is a dangerously useless cycle network. Now they are trying to pull of the same stunt in Central London. My only hope is direct action by the Stop Killing Cyclists campaign. It is being led by a former ballet dancer who converted his terrace house to an eco-house and became an environmental campaigner http://www.3acorns.co.uk/page11.html